Elementary students raise money for man battling cancer

Life is definitely a journey filled with ups and downs. But for 29-year-old Josh Michaels, this past year has been that and so much more.

"A lot of people freaked out and I was just always, 'Well, what do we do next?' Let's go get it done and fight this thing head on," he said.

Last year, Josh was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. Since then, it's been chemo treatments and surgeries. Josh was told the treatments were a success, but then the cancer came back. He said it's been back and forth for months.

"It's something you can't take away and you wish that they didn't have to go through that," said Dawn Michaels, Josh's mom. "And to see everything that he has been through and that he's going to continue to go through until we can have this be gone."

Now, the cancer is back.

"You just gotta wake up every day and give it your best," Josh said.

It's that positive outlook and support that's kept him strong. Even support from an unexpected place: Kids from Comanche Elementary School where his mom works.

"The kids really stepped up and it was amazing," Josh said.

It started with paintings and cards, the little things that made a difference.

"You know, it was real nice. It's just stuff to lighten your day, because you can have some bad days with this stuff," he said.

But the kids wanted to do more, so they started a coin drive called, "Josh's Journey."

Aubree Loftis is a fifth grader who helped organize the drive.

"Knowing her, we like, we knew him also. We just like her so much that we just knew that we needed to help her and her family out," Aubree said.

For two weeks, the entire student body raised more than $2,000 in coins, and it's all going to Josh to help him fight.

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